Multi-service request within a contact center

• US 7,936,867 B1
• Filed: 08/15/2006
• Issued: 05/03/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Inventors: Sobus, Katherine A., Thomson, Rodney A., Hill, Deborah Jeanne, Kohler, Joylee E., Paddock, Henry R., Kiefhaber, Sarah Hildebrandt
• Primary Examiner(s): Matar; Ahmad F
• Assistant Examiner(s): SHAH, ANTIM G
• Application Number:
  US11/464,737
• Time in Patent Office: 1,722 Days
• Field of Search: 379/265.1, 379/265.11, 379/265.12, 379/265.05, 379/266.01, 379/265.09, 379/265.13, 379/266.02
• US Class Current: 379/265.12
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2242/22 Automatic class or number identification arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/5233 Operator skill based call distribution

Abstract

A contact center that includes:

• • (a) an input 200 operable to receive a contact;
  • (b) a task expert module 232 to (i) identify a plurality of tasks 400 associated with the contact; (ii) group the tasks 400 into first and second task sets; and (iii) queue the first and second task sets at different positions in at least one queue 208; and
  • (c) an agent and work item selector 220 to assign the first task set to a first agent for servicing while maintaining the second task set in the at least one queue 208.

Claims

1. A method for servicing work items, comprising:

a processor receiving a single contact from a customer;

the processor identifying a plurality of tasks associated with the single contact;

the processor grouping the tasks into first and second task sets;

the processor queuing the first and second task sets at different positions in at least one queue; and

the processor assigning the first task set to a first agent for servicing while maintaining the second task set in the at least one queue, wherein the second task set is serviced after servicing of the first task set is completed.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second task sets correspond to different first and second agent skills, respectively, wherein a first queue corresponds to the first agent skill and a second queue corresponds to the second agent skill, and wherein the first task set is in the first queue and the second task set is in the second queue.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the second task set progresses through the at least one queue while the first task set is being serviced.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first task set must be serviced before the second task set, wherein the second task set arrives at a head of the second queue before the first task set arrives at the head of the first queue, and further comprising:

holding the second task set at the head of the second (and subsequent) queue(s) without assigning the second task to a second agent for servicing until the first task set is serviced by the first agent.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein, after the processor assigning the first task set to a first agent for servicing while maintaining the second task set in the at least one queue, marking the first task set, but not the second task set, as completed.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein first and second sets of data structures define the first and second task sets, each of the first and second sets of data structures comprising a dependency field defining a servicing hierarchy for the first and second task set, and wherein the dependency field of the first task set has a different value than a dependency field of the second task set indicating that the first task set is to be serviced before the second task set.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the first set of data structures comprises a reference to the second set of data structures and vice versa and wherein each of the first and second subsets of data structures comprise a reference to the common contact.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the first agent is selected to service the first task set to maximize a number of tasks in the first task set.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein, while the first task set is being serviced, the single contact is marked as “

busy” and

while the first and second task sets are not being serviced, the single contact is marked as “

not busy”

.

10. A computer readable medium comprising processor executable instructions to perform the steps of claim 1.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and/or second queued task sets are modified based on the result of a completed task set in one or more of the following ways:

a dependency of the first and/or second queued task set is changed, a priority of the first and/or second queued task set is changed, a task member of the first and/or second queued task set is eliminated, a task member of the first and/or second queued task set is added, and a queue assignment of the first and/or second task set is changed.

23. The method of claim 1, wherein a servicing human agent can view currently queued task sets corresponding to a single contact being serviced by the agent.

24. The method of claim 1, wherein a human agent is currently servicing the first task set and wherein the servicing human agent can create a new task member for the second queued task set and/or a new third task set that is immediately queued upon creation.

25. The method of claim 1, wherein a human agent is currently servicing the first task set but not the second task set and wherein the servicing human agent can modify the second task set prior to the completion of servicing of the first task set.

11. A contact center, comprising:

an input operable to receive a single contact from a customer;

a task expert module operable to

identify two or more requests associated with the single contact;

identify one or more tasks associated each of the requests;

group the tasks into first and second task sets; and

queue the first and second task sets at different positions in at least one queue, wherein the first task set is completed before the second task set is started; and

an agent and work item selector operable to assign the first task set to a first agent for servicing while maintaining the second task set in the at least one queue.

12. The contact center of claim 11, wherein the first and second task sets correspond to different first and second agent skills, respectively, wherein the at least one queue is first and second queues, the first queue corresponding to the first agent skill and the second queue corresponding to the second agent skill, and wherein the first task set is in the first queue and the second task set is in the second queue.

13. The contact center of claim 11, wherein the second task set progresses through the at least one queue while the first task set is being serviced.

14. The contact center of claim 11, wherein the first task set must be serviced before the second task set, wherein the second task set arrives at a head of the second queue before the first task set arrives at the head of the first queue, and wherein the selector is further operable to hold the second task set at the head of the second queue without assigning the second task to a second agent for servicing until the first task set is serviced by the first agent.

15. The contact center of claim 11, wherein, after servicing of the first task set, marking the first task set, but not the second task set, as completed.

16. The contact center of claim 11, wherein first and second sets of data structures define the first and second task sets, each of the first and second sets of data structures comprising a dependency field defining a servicing hierarchy for the first and second task set, and wherein the dependency field of the first task set has a different value than a dependency field of the second task set indicating that the first task set is to be serviced before the second task set.

17. The contact center of claim 16, wherein the first set of data structures comprises a reference to the second set of data structures and vice versa and wherein each of the first and second subsets of data structures comprise a reference to the single contact.

18. The contact center of claim 11, wherein the agent and work item selector preferentially selects those agents able to service multiple related task sets and wherein the task expert module is operable, after the first task set is serviced, to change a value of the second dependency field to be the same as the value of the first dependency field and wherein, while the first task set is being serviced, the single contact is marked as “

busy” and

while the first and second task sets are not being serviced, the single contact is marked as “

not busy”

.

19. A non-transitory computer readable medium, comprising:

a plurality of sets of data structures, each set of data structures defining a corresponding work item skill queue, wherein;

each set of data structures further defining a plurality of queue positions in the corresponding skill queue, each queue position being associated with a different work item,

first and second queues comprise first and second work items in first and second queue positions, respectively,

the first and second work items correspond to first and second task sets, respectively,

the first and second work items correspond to a single contact from a customer, and wherein first and second subsets of data structures defining the first and second work items each comprise a dependency field defining a servicing hierarchy for the first and second work items, and

the dependency field of the first work item has a different value than a dependency field of the second work item indicating that the first work item is to be completely serviced before the second work item.

20. The computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein the first subset of data structures comprises a reference to the second subset of data structures and vice versa.

21. The computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein each of the first and second subsets of data structures comprise a reference to the single contact.